Registrations rose to 1.144 million cars from 1.085 million a year earlier, the consulting firm said on Tuesday. Its numbers are based on a combination of published national data and estimates for some smaller markets that have yet to report.

The seasonally adjusted annualised rate (SAAR) of Western European sales rose 3.8 percent from October levels to 14.57 million cars, according to the data.

Sales in the region will rise 2.7 percent this year and another 0.8 percent in 2018, the firm predicts - while the British market shrinks by 5.8 percent, then another 5.1 percent.

Registrations last month rose 10.3 percent in France, 9.4 percent in Germany and 12.4 percent in Spain, according to data published in recent days.

But UK car sales plunged 11.2 percent, the SMMT industry group reported on Tuesday, amid uncertainties over Brexit and the future of diesels. That puts the British auto market on course for its first full-year decline since 2011. (Reporting by Laurence Frost; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)